Chanel Johnstun

Companies:
Lucid Software, Disaster Recovery Center (not-for-profit)

Job Titles:
Independent Contractor, Board Member

Why did you pursue a career in the instructional design and technology field?
I'm curious about the various ways people learn, why we choose to learn, and how experiences can be structured to enhance, encourage, or direct learning. I am curious what the most efficient and effective ways are to process information. I wonder how social/soft skills translate into other areas of life apart from where they may initially have been developed (for example, from sports to the classroom). I also wanted to have the ability to work remotely and on a part-time basis as I wanted to harmonize my desire to work and be home with my family and play sports.

What are some of your day-to-day responsibilities in your roles?
Research, create, and ideate content for the ed-tech aspect of Lucid. I have weekly Zoom meetings to stay aligned and/or collaborate with other Lucid for Education team members. I create student templates, instructions, lesson plans, with and for their software (Lucidchart and Lucidpress).

How have you found your jobs? What advice do you have for someone trying to find a job in the instructional design and technology field?
An email was sent out to the listserv looking for an intern for Lucid with the possibility of being remote. Although I was now graduated, I applied for the internship. They decided to create a new position and hire me. I completed the masters in a roundabout way. I did one year as a full-time student, took a two year break to teach middle school, and then finished the degree in 2 more years going part-time as I also had two children during that time. Even though I did not complete an off-campus internship, I feel I was able to get a job because of my teaching experience, knowledge of teaching and learning theory, design theory, and ability to write directions. Part of my interview and job application included design activities.

In what ways did your graduate program prepare you for your career?
Going through the process of my design project was the best preparation. Having a process that I had gone through to design something helped me learn what worked for me to complete big projects. I also learned how to manage my design documents and be specific with my design and theory choices. Besides experiencing a design process, two skills that I developed that I use all the time are 1) creating clear and succinct emails - as I work remotely and that is my main form of communication, and 2) learning how to evaluate my own work and ask for specific feedback. I feel my project chair was vital in helping me develop all of these skills.